People
Sylvia B. Fishman, Ph.D.
Professor
Sylvia Barack Fishman is Professor of Contemporary Jewish Life in the Near Eastern and Judaic Studies Department at Brandeis University, as well as co-director of the Hadassah-Brandeis Institute, and is a Faculty Affiliate of the Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies. Her newest book, The Way Into the Varieties of Jewishness, explores diverse understandings of Jewish identity, religion and culture across the centuries. Her interview research with Jewish and non-Jewish men and women, as reported in two books, Choosing Jewish: Conversations About Conversion and Double Or Nothing? Jewish Families and Mixed Marriage, have precipitated lively scholarly and communal discussion.
Prof. Fishman is the author of numerous articles on the interplay of American and Jewish values, transformations in the American Jewish family, the impact of Jewish education, changing roles of Jewish women, and American Jewish literature, film and popular culture. Her previous books include: Follow My Footprints: Changing Images of Women in American Jewish Fiction; A Breath of Life: Feminism in the American Jewish Community; and Jewish Life and American Culture. Prof. Fishman received her BA from Stern College at Yeshiva University and her Ph.D. from Washington University in St. Louis. She speaks frequently at Jewish communal events and academic conferences.